Jeni’s Ugly Pies is undergoing a face lift, just in time for the busy holiday baking season.

Not the pies – they’re as ugly as ever – just the bakery.

“The storefront was getting a bit worn and we felt it was time to spruce it up and put together a look that better represents our new offerings and us as bakery owners,” said Jeni Von Buskirk, who began baking and selling pies in 2010 at farmers markets. She and her husband Trevor co-own the business and opened the bakery two years ago in Highland Township.

“We hope it turns out a bit rock ‘n' roll vintage chic. Basically, we’re just rearranging, painting and fixing up the floors.”

The Highland Township DDA and Highland White Lake Business Owners Association will hold a ribbon-cutting on Wednesday, Nov. 1. Product samples, coffee, and water will be available.

The Von Buskirks will hold a pie-tasting weekend Thursday through Saturday, Nov. 2-4, at the remodeled bakery, 1095 S. Milford Road. The event drives early Thanksgiving Day orders, which will be taken through Nov. 15.

We caught up with Von Buskirk to talk about new products at the bakery, and, of course, her pies:

Q: How did you learn to bake?

A: I was raised in a family that showed their love for people through feeding them. It’s ingrained. As far as learning to bake, my dad’s mom, Grandma D’Amico, taught me how to make pie. She generally stayed with pumpkin or apple — the best damn apple pie — but she gave me the basics. I’d like to think she’s watching from heaven and pretty proud of what we’re doing here.

A: My husband Trevor, our son Gino and our daughter help out in the bakery. During busy season, we also bring in our extra helpers — pretty much every friend and family member we can trick into helping.

Q:How does your crust look these days?

A: The look of the crust definitely depends on who made your pie. Jeni = ugly. Trevor = beautiful.

Q:What’s your best-selling pie, your signature pie?

A: Our best seller is killer key lime, which caught me by surprise. A couple of our other great sellers are fresh roasted pumpkin — yes, we roast our own gourds for these — and our browned butter bourbon pecan, caramel pecan, banana cream, coconut cream, and chocolate cream.

Savory hand pies with goat cheese and tomato(Photo11: Submitted)

Q:Do you create your own recipes?

A: They’re all my own recipes, though I am a great peruser of recipes. I read them like novels. So anything that looks interesting to me, I tweak it, twist it and make it into something with my own little stamp of ugliness on it.

Q:What’s your process for introducing a new pie flavor?

A:Hmm, I’ve got a bit of this and a bit of that left. Should we mix it together? Boing. New recipe. You never know when they’re going to pop up. We are completely unscheduled about this stuff.

Q: Have any new flavors flopped?

A: I’d never call anything a flop, except when I burn the pants off something, like the dead s’mores pie…(see photo) people actually offered to eat that one. So I’d say there’s an audience for any flavor you can think of.

A: New line — we call them Jeni’s Local Faves — some of these are small or not so small locals that we, as a starting business, grew up with, like Boardwalk Gourmet Mustard and Scotty O’Hotty Hot Sauces. It’s awesome to be able to support the same people who were sitting next to you during your first "big" farmers market or your first radio interview. Some of the other companies, like Kelly’s Karamels, Tall Paul’s Pickles, Davisburg Bread Co., Wallace Scones and Jen’s Dressings are companies whose products we’ve fallen in love with over the years. Also offering coffee by the cup and bag, a portion of those proceeds go to the Michigan DNR, which is a near and dear operation for us.

Q:Any tips you can share on baking pies?

A: Don’t overwork your dough. Roll it and leave it. It will get tough if you keep playing with it. Nobody minds an ugly pie. Stop touching it. It’ll likely never be perfect.